How far will my dough go ? (transom stringers and deck)

[Just_a_Kid]

Hello all,<br /><br />Well I have been a big fan of this site ... read many many posts on repairing of the transom and of the stringers and decking ... <br /><br />After I got my Chrysler Magna 75 going I went to inspect an areah on the driver section of the floor that I figured I would have to replace the floor .... well as I had figured and already prepared for ... I opened a can-o-worms .... <br /><br />I just wonder what people are thinking when the put the floors on some of these boats.... I have VIP ski/fish tri-hull boat and they didn't epoxy the wood, didn't glass the stringers ... and on top of that the foam they sprayed in through the floor which held a lot of water .... <br /><br />The transom had an xtra piece of plywood fiberglassed in as well as a metal plate outside and on top to reinforce the transom...<br /><br />The deck had nowhere to drain if water did get below deck ... <br /><br />Does everybody find this when they are refinishing a boat ? My plan is to put a different kind of foam ... or even the soda bottles ... and make it so that it can drain in the back of the boat .... <br /><br />I guess my bottom question from everybody that had done this before .... what is the $$ of everything involved in doing this ?? <br /><br />The only things that I already have is 3gal cans of Resin (which are old... do they keep ?) ... and a couple sacks of woven roving .. fairly heavy....<br /><br />I would appreciate any input on what it has cost you guys .... so that way I know what I am putting or planning on putting into it.<br /><br />Thanks ... sorry for the long post

 

[Bondo]

Re: How far will my dough go ? (transom stringers and deck)

I already have is 3gal cans of Resin (which are old... do they keep ?)

If it's Polyester, Shelf life is about a year... Provided it Hasn't Frozen.....<br />Epoxy will keep almost forever....<br /><br />In My experince, It Usually costs about 3 times what the finnished boat is Worth.........

 

[ob15]

Re: How far will my dough go ? (transom stringers and deck)

It's going to cost a little but the old saying goes - you get what you pay for. Use epoxy resin & good marine plywood. If you seal everything up good, it will last longer than the rest of the boat.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: How far will my dough go ? (transom stringers and deck)

I'll put it to you this way, My rig is 16 feet, I used 11 gallons of poly resin, 30 square yards of mat, cloth, and roving, three 3/4 sheets of acx ply, three sheets of 1/2 inch acx ply, and a sheet of 5/8 acx ply. Then there was the foam, enough to achieve 16 cubic feet of volume, and finally countless stainless screws and other bits. I figure, just for the floor/stringer/transom I was out about $600 or so. Then there was all the other work I did. Current tally is somewhere in the $3000 range. Check my web link at the bottom for more details if you have not already done so. Will I ever get the money back out of it? No, but I will get many seasons of use out of it, and have the peace of mind of knowing that nothing is rotted or going to fail soon, and that alone is more than worth the paltry sum of money I have in it. Bear in mind I used inexpensive materials because I know I can make it last as long as I need it to, its still better than the original build and the boat lasted 33 years on the original materials. When you get into epoxy and marine ply, you are talkin' even more loot.<br /><br />I almost always recommend not doing a rebuild on a boat unless you plan to keep it around for awhile. It is a labor intensive way to get into a boat, but if you enjoy that sort of work, then go for it. The end result is a lot less expensive than a new boat, and used boats are always a crap-shoot unless you know the owner and know he took care of it. Good luck....

 

[CTD]

Re: How far will my dough go ? (transom stringers and deck)

Looks like it is going to run $850.00 for materials for the structural part of replacing transom stringers, and floor on a 19 ft boat. No carpet etc.

 

[Just_a_Kid]

Re: How far will my dough go ? (transom stringers and deck)

Thanks for all the input guys...<br /><br />So minus the labor, sounds like it is worth it to just do it yourself.... I am planning on getting a lot of use out of it.<br /><br />Right now I have two boats that I am working on repairing .... I just figured that this one would be easier than the other since The top half comes off and I just have to do the floor stringers and transom.... the other one that I have http://home.alltel.net/jaguar25 was just going to be too much work considering that I was going to redesign the upper half since the current design was not very good.<br /><br />I guess if I spend it as I go it shouldn't be so bad .... just need to check those cans to see if they are poly or not ... if they are then I guess I have to toss them....

 

[Chinewalker]

Re: How far will my dough go ? (transom stringers and deck)

I am into my second complete redo and I wouldn't have it any other way (at least on my budget). My first StarCraft American 15 ran us $300 to buy it, another $1000 or so for the materials, carpet, seats, vinyl, etc. The end result was almost exactly what we wanted, and everything was where we wanted it. <br /> I say almost, because we bought another Starcraft American 15 - my wife never liked the color of the first one, and it had some cosmetic damage that I wasn't able to deal with properly.<br /> The bottom line is that when we're done, we'll have a boat that fits us, will be for all intents and purposes, brand new (and in many respects, better than new) and we WON'T have a payment book to deal with! <br /> I am fortunate to have a sizeable heated shop to work in, plus I have pretty much any tool I could ever need, so I haven't had to start from square zero on either project. Take that into account with your own projects - that SawZall or hand grinder you need to do it right, isn't a cheap tool, and adds to the overall cost.<br /> The bottom line is that I enjoy the work, I get the boat I really want when I'm done, and it's a boat style and configuration you can't even find new today. The cup holders are where I want them, the seats are where I want them, the gauges and switches are where I want them, the wiring makes sense (to me), and if something breaks, I know exactly how to fix it. It also doesn't hurt that my wife enjoys working on the boat, too. She did all of the vinyl work on the first boat, and has already purchased the materials to do the second one...<br /><br />- Scott<br />